European leaders working hard to keep Greece in eurozone

[webfact]

European leaders working hard to keep Greece in eurozone
DEMETRIS NELLAS, Associated Press
RAF CASERT, Associated Press

BRUSSELS (AP) — Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras headed to Brussels late Sunday for a crucial emergency eurozone summit aimed at reaching a deal between Athens and its international creditors that would allow the debt-ravaged country to avoid a default and a potentially disastrous exit from the euro.

Tsipras' departure for Monday's summit of the 19 eurozone leaders capped a day of intense contacts between many of the major players, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Francois Hollande and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, all bent on keeping Greece within the currency club and avoiding financial chaos.

Greece is facing a June 30 deadline to make a 1.6 billion euro ($1.8 billion) loan repayment to the International Monetary Fund, which, at present, it would be unable to make. And even bigger payments to the European Central Bank in July. So far, both Greece and the creditors have appeared locked in a 'who-blinks-first' contest that has left them unable to bridge the gaps and secure a deal.

On Sunday, Tsipras presented to Juncker, Hollande and Merkel "Greece's proposal for a mutually beneficial agreement, which will provide a permanent solution and not just postpone tackling the problem," his press office said in a statement.

However, technical negotiators from the creditors were still waiting in Brussels for a detailed outline of the Greek proposals late Sunday to assess whether they really constitute a breakthrough, a European Union official said.

"The institutions are waiting," the official said, more than eight hours after the Greek government announced they had presented the proposal to creditors. "The condition for this meeting to be productive is to have the proposal."

The official asked to remain anonymous because of the sensitivity of the negotiations.

Over the past weeks, the international creditors have often complained that Greek initiatives have been too slow to come and far too vague.

In Milan, Hollande told reporters that everything must be done to keep Greece in the Eurozone because "if the Greeks leave the eurozone it won't be positive for the Greeks or Europeans."

"We need stability" especially since much of Europe is beginning to rebound economically, he said. "For this reason we must reach an accord."

Tsipras met with his senior ministers all day in Athens and left for Brussels Sunday evening.

Ahead of the eurozone summit Monday, Tsipras will hold a one-on-one meeting with EU President Donald Tusk and will then join a meeting, convened by Tusk, with Juncker, IMF managing director Christine Lagarde and European Central Bank President Mario Draghi, Tsipras' press office said.

Talks between cash-strapped Greece and its creditors on the completion of an earlier bailout deal had already hit a snag before the January election of the anti-bailout, anti-austerity coalition government headed by the radical leftist Syriza party. As a result, Greece has not received any bailout funds since summer 2014 and its ailing banking system is only kept afloat through a weekly infusion of emergency funds from the ECB.

The new government's radically different approach, essentially denying the need for austerity measures which it calls "recessionary" has often stretched the talks in the past five months to the breaking point.

About 5,000 attended a pro-government rally in central Athens Sunday night. On Thursday, a strong rally was held by those favoring a deal with the EU. The pro-EU forces will gather again Monday evening outside Parliament.

Syriza and similar leftist political groups have organized "solidarity to Greece" rallies across Europe over the weekend or joined related protests such as an anti-austerity march in the United Kingdom on Saturday.
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Frances D'Emilio contributed from Rome, Italy. Demetris Nellas reported from Athens.


-- (c) Associated Press 2015-06-22

[Loptr]

If the bureaucrats in Brussels want to keep Greece in the EU and Nato, then they should tell Christine Legarde and Mario Draghi to continue to supply Greek banks with liquidity... After all, Legarde just this past week stated that the IMF would continue to extend credit to Ukraine, even in the face of default... What's good for the goose is good for the gander after all...

[ezzra]

The people that really should work hard to stay in the Euro zone are the Greeks, and so far they're voting with their daily trips to the ATM to withdraw their money and hide in under the mattresses.

So if the Greek themselves don't trust their government, how can the rest of the Euro zone will? and until the Greek will understand the beggars can't be choosers, and they have to get up from their cushy government pensions and afternoon siestas, things will only get worse...

[IMA_FARANG]

According to my opinion what is happening is that the Eurozone Banker Gangster Mafia Thugs (the "Banksters")

are just trying to draw out their criminal fraud scheme to steal more money from the middle class taxpayers of the Eurozone for personal profit.

The only real option for Greece is for the Greek government to end the financial slavery that they are being held under now by the Bankster Mafia is to default , nationalize, and confiscate all existing Euro Bank assets in Greece.

Poverty is better than Eurozone continuing financial slavery.

[Naam]

confiscate all existing Euro Bank assets in Greece.

[tartempion]

Let's Lend them 7 billion euros so they can pay us back 1.6 billion and continue to ride everything for free.

[robblok]

The people that really should work hard to stay in the Euro zone are the Greeks, and so far they're voting with their daily trips to the ATM to withdraw their money and hide in under the mattresses.

So if the Greek themselves don't trust their government, how can the rest of the Euro zone will? and until the Greek will understand the beggars can't be choosers, and they have to get up from their cushy government pensions and afternoon siestas, things will only get worse...

Just kick them out, they are the most untrustworthy bunch of people alive. There was an agreement but they new government did not want to honor it. Who says this won't happen again or that the Greeks will really do as promised. Just dump them and make sure they suffer so people know what happens with untrustworthy people.

[winstonc]

The people that really should work hard to stay in the Euro zone are the Greeks, and so far they're voting with their daily trips to the ATM to withdraw their money and hide in under the mattresses.

So if the Greek themselves don't trust their government, how can the rest of the Euro zone will? and until the Greek will understand the beggars can't be choosers, and they have to get up from their cushy government pensions and afternoon siestas, things will only get worse...

Just kick them out, they are the most untrustworthy bunch of people alive. There was an agreement but they new government did not want to honor it. Who says this won't happen again or that the Greeks will really do as promised. Just dump them and make sure they suffer so people know what happens with untrustworthy people.

they are what they are rob..but remember they defaulted 5 times in history ..you need to blame goldman sachs etal for insisting they were a competent economy before allowing them to enter the euro.club,and germany and france for wanting a huge european project that they can call there own and dominate the lesser states im voting to get out of the eu when the referendum comes to the uk..its a corrupt club

Edited June 22, 2015 by winstonc

[bangon04]

""We need stability" especially since much of Europe is beginning to rebound economically, he said. "For this reason we must reach an accord."

does that sound just a bit like "Too big to fail" ?? Where have we heard that before?

[ABCer]

confiscate all existing Euro Bank assets in Greece.

[ABCer]

Frankly speaking I cannot see the value of Greece to EU.

More Frankly speaking I cannot see the value of EU to European countries.

Please, no bashings! UK does not see it either...

[bangon04]

Frankly speaking I cannot see the value of Greece to EU.

More Frankly speaking I cannot see the value of EU to European countries.

Please, no bashings! UK does not see it either...

The UK joined and voted to stay in the EEC. This has great value to the UK and to all of the European countries.

What was not voted on and is controlled by the unelected European mandarins, is the "ever closer union" of the EU. This has less value to the average citizen, who does not gain as much as the vested interests.

Hopefully the AEC does not become the AU in the future.... Learn by our mistakes, don't copy them.

[Baerboxer]

Frankly speaking I cannot see the value of Greece to EU.

More Frankly speaking I cannot see the value of EU to European countries.

Please, no bashings! UK does not see it either...

The UK joined and voted to stay in the EEC. This has great value to the UK and to all of the European countries.

What was not voted on and is controlled by the unelected European mandarins, is the "ever closer union" of the EU. This has less value to the average citizen, who does not gain as much as the vested interests.

Hopefully the AEC does not become the AU in the future.... Learn by our mistakes, don't copy them.

Very true. Certain European politicians want to turn EU into a federal state of Europe. That was not the intention, nor has it ever been voted on by any group of people in Europe. Their are movements against this in most of the dominant EU member countries now. What started as a very good idea has been hi-jacked by some self interested groups. The fact that certain countries seem to have lied in order to qualify for membership says a lot about those non elected bureaucrats who run things, and the "professional" companies they used to check and audit the figures.

Sadly, a house of cards waiting to collapse.

[Loptr]

Let's Lend them 7 billion euros so they can pay us back 1.6 billion and continue to ride everything for free.

Ultimately it's all funny-money anyway, printed out of thin air and backed by the "good faith" in the issuer... What's a bit of paper and ink anyway...

[micmichd]

confiscate all existing Euro Bank assets in Greece.

what's so funny?

[White Christmas13]

confiscate all existing Euro Bank assets in Greece.

Well consider Costas he has not been here for a few weeks